Birds
Common Redpoll
Acanthis flammea · also called common redpolls
Tunnelling into a drift of snow as temperatures plunge toward minus 65 degrees, a common redpoll settles in for the night, its cached seeds stored safely in a specialised throat pouch ready for a quick meal before facing the Arctic cold again at dawn.
Overview
The common redpoll, Acanthis flammea, is a small, cold-hardy songbird native to forest and polar tundra edge habitat across the far northern regions of North America, Europe, and Asia. Its extreme cold tolerance, snow-burrowing roosting behaviour, and specialised seed-caching throat pouch make it one of the most physiologically remarkable small birds found anywhere in the Arctic and subarctic.
A tiny bird built for the deep freeze
Weighing barely more than a few coins, the common redpoll survives cold that would kill most animals its size, relying on a combination of snow insulation, seed caching, and a metabolism running hot enough to keep it alive through the harshest northern winters.
Status
Least Concern, remaining widespread across suitable forest and polar tundra edge habitat throughout the far north, with population numbers fluctuating year to year based on seed availability.
Common Redpoll: common questions
How does the common redpoll survive such extreme cold?
This species tolerates temperatures as low as minus 65 degrees Celsius through a combination of adaptations, including burrowing into snow to roost overnight for insulation, a specialised throat pouch for caching seeds, and a notably high metabolic rate that generates internal heat.
What is the common redpoll's throat pouch used for?
This species has a specialised throat pouch used to store extra seeds while feeding quickly at a food source, allowing it to retreat to a sheltered, insulated roost and digest the cached food later rather than remaining exposed while feeding for extended periods.
Why are common redpoll winter movements so unpredictable?
This species is an irruptive migrant, meaning its winter movements vary unpredictably from year to year depending on the availability of birch and alder seed crops further north, sometimes appearing in large numbers far south of its typical range during poor seed years.
Where does the common redpoll live?
This species is native to forest and polar tundra edge habitat across the far northern regions of North America, Europe, and Asia, tolerating some of the coldest conditions faced by any small songbird.